Decision on FDI in multi-brand retail yet to be taken: Mukherjee

Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee told the Lok Sabha today that the government was yet to take a decision on opening up multi-brand retailing to foreign direct investment (FDI).

Replying to a calling attention motion from Communist Party of India (CPI) leader Gurudas Dasgupta and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) member Nishikant Dubey, he said no proposal or recommendation had been made to the government for liberalisation of FDI in the multi-brand retailing sector.

"There is no recommendation for FDI in multi-brand trading. Government has not taken any decision on this," he said.

"I am repeating...government has not taken any view on it at all because the issue is complex," he added.

Referring to the Economic Survey presented in Parliament last month, Mukherjee said the beauty of the report lay in the freedom given to economists who were asked to not let the official view of the government influence their analysis.

"The analysts have been asked to apply their mind. Though the stated policy of the government may be something, the economic survey may vary from it," he added.